2017 F1 calendar unveiled

29-09-2016

The World Motorsport Council has unveiled the proposed 2017 calendar for the 2017 season, with the action getting underway on March 26th in Australia, ending in Abu Dhabi on November 26. British GP pencilled in for July 9th, as Azerbaijan once again clashes with Le Mans on June 18th.

Australia has held the season-opener for all but two years since 1996, and will do so again in 2017. (Image Credit: Getty Images)

Formula One 2017, the 68th season of the FIA Formula One World Championship will kick off in Melbourne, Australia on March 26th, the World Motorsport council (WMSC) has confirmed.

The season will consist of the same 21 races as the 2016 season in more or less the same order, with only two changes to the schedule. The Chinese Grand Prix will be the second round of the season, on April 9th, swapping with Bahrain, which will be one week later on April 16th. The same applies to Malaysia and Singapore, which change order, meaning the final leg of the season, the fly-aways begin in Sepang on September 17th, with Singapore taking place on October 1st.

Silverstone will host the British Grand Prix on July 9th. Unlike in 2016, there will not be a clash with the final of Mens singles from Wimbledon. Four races will take place in July, with two pairs of back-to-backs, Austria-Britain and Hungary-Germany, which is the same arrangement as the 2016 season.

Silverstone will host the British Grand Prix on July 9th. Photo: Getty

F1 will return to Azerbaijan for the second time on June 18th, again a week after Canada, but there will once again be a clash between the end of the Le Mans 24 Hours, and the start of the European Grand Prix from the Azeri capital, Baku.

There are three provisional slots on the calander released, with Canada on June 11th, Germany on July 30th - at Hockenheim and not the Nurburgring and the Brazilian GP on November 12th subject to confirmation - something that has bemused the organisers in Sao Paulo.

The action will come to end on November 26th, at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi. Provided the calander is 21 races long, F1 will reach 977 races come the end of next season. The 1000th Grand Prix, should there be 21 races again in 2018, will be the second round of the 2019 season.